Subject: Re: Afghanistan/oil?
"On the other hand, I fail to see how an interest in building oil pipelines is necessarily at odds with the interests of the people of Afghanistan. As in Macedonia, the main interest the big powers have is in peace, produced with a minimum of resources. If that can best be obtained through a broad-based, tolerant government, then that's what they have an interest in. And Afghanistan could certainly use the transit fees. It seems more likely at this point that it's the people of Turkmenistan who will be sacrificed to dictatorship."
And
"BTW, while I think it is true that oil always plays a role in military strategic thinking, I think that it is wrong to assert that military and diplomatic objectives are always subordinate to the interests of the oil companies. Sometimes there reverse is true -- the interests of the oil companies are forcibly subordinated to military/diplomatic interests precisely because oil is considered to be so important. The Baku to Ceyhan pipeline is a case in point. If oil companies had their way, it'd run through Iran. The Iran sanctions are another case in point. They not only hurt oil companies in general, but US ones in particular."
Surely it's not in the interest of people of the world to be dependent on oil. I think this is the important relevance of the oil/Afghanistan connection and other oil/war histories and future scenarious. The cost of oil in terms of war, corruption and terrorism (let alone pollution, carbon impacts) is now outweighing its benefits.
As an Australian I still feel a great sense of loss..still... that the Whitlam Government's attempt to nationalise the oil industry was thwarted by a hostile press in the early 1970's. Rob Schaap might be able confirm a much rumoured American CIA link with this event. (I don't imagine America and their allies will allow Afghanistan or other countries to refuse to export their petroleum).
Brenda Rosser PS: The latest news bulletin on ABC radio this afternoon is that war planes are bombing the heart of Kabul (doesn't sound like any deliberate attempts are being made to avoid innocent civilians). POSTSCRIPT at 4pm Tasmanian time the news on ABC had changed to 'war planes have been seen flying over the city'.
Plus there is now a multitude of anthrax scares around Australia including at Sydney international airport (white dust on a passenger ticket) and dusty white letters arriving at the Herald and Weekly Times office in Melbourne, the Premiere of Queensland, Beatty, a consulate etc.